*The Melancholy of Untold History.

By Minsoo Kang. Read by Keong Sim

2024. 8hr. HarperAudio, DD (9780063337534).

Writer/professor Kang's debut novel is a stupendous feat of erudite imagination and a convincing treatise on the timeless cultural value of storytelling. Korean American actor Sim is an optimal cipher—patient, inviting, revealing. Kang presents a tri-fold puzzle with intriguing pieces that could stand alone, but bound together make a radiant whole. He opens with an ancient storyteller whose fabled prowess grabs the emperor's attention, only to be brutally punished for his unparalleled skills. Thousands of years later, stories become history and the contemporary historian lectures to his undergraduates. His own narrative leans toward tragedy: his storied career—elevated for debunking centuries-old history—means little after he loses his beloved wife. His loneliness is briefly alleviated by a surprisingly comforting affair with his former student-now-colleague, but he remains trapped in his overwhelming grief. Meanwhile, the storyteller's myths begin, introducing the "magnificent mountain known as Four Verdant Mothers," where four powerful deities (two gods, two goddesses) are about to destroy their friendship, not to mention global peace, over a single perfect peach. Humanity suffers—in between thriving, warring, recovering, reinventing. Amidst that "melancholy of history," marred by "futile ambitions and unending violence," survive life-giving, life-saving stories, even as gods, royalty, leaders, soldiers, and common people forever fade. Remarkable are the promises of new starts, new endings, and new adventures. Sim delivers an utterly exquisite performance.

— Terry Hong